International Center on Conflict and Negotiation (ICCN)

In 2001, UN Resolution 55/282, set aside 21 September as a day of global peace and non-violence. An International Day of Peace has existed since 1981, when UN Resolution 36/67 was adopted unanimously by the UN Assembly, but it did not have a fixed calendar date - it was instead tied to the first day of the UN General Assembly session in September each year. Efforts by the advocate and filmmaker Jeremy Gilley and his supporters led to the 2001 UN Resolution fixing the date on 21 September.

www.peoplebuildingpeace.org

Mother Teresa (1910 –1997), was an Albanian Roman Catholicnun with Indian citizenship who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata (Calcutta), India in 1950. For over 45 years she ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned, and dying, while guiding the Missionaries of Charity's expansion, first throughout India and then in other countries.

She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and India's highest civilian honor, the Bharat Ratna, in 1980 for her humanitarian work. Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity continued to expand, and at the time of her death it was operating 610 missions in 123 countries, including hospices and homes for people with HIV/AIDS, leprosy and tuberculosis, soup kitchens, children's and family counseling programs, orphanages, and

Following her death she was beatified by Pope John Paul II and given the title Blessed.

"Peace starts with a smile."

Mother Teresa

„If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other“.

Mother Teresa

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929 –1968) was an American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States and he is frequently referenced as a human rights icon today.

King is recognized as a martyr by two Christian churches. A Baptist minister, King became a civil rights activist early in his career. King's efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. There, he raised public consciousness of the civil rights movement and established himself as one of the greatest orators in U.S. history.

"Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal." Martin Luther King, Jr

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Martin Luther King, Jr

Abraham Johannes Muste, peacemaker, was born on January 8, 1885, and died on this day in 1967. He was a vibrant example of Christian nonviolence in the twentieth century. In 1909, he was ordained as a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church. A. J. Muste became Executive Secretary of the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR), a religious pacifist organization in 1940, a position he held until 1953.

"There is no way to peace; peace is the way" is perhaps the most famous statement by this idealist. Muste was a key organizer in a broad anti-war movement in response to the Vietnam War. "The problem after a war is the victor. He thinks he has just proved that war and violence will pay. Who will now teach him a lesson?" (1941)

Once a reporter asked him, "Do you really think you are going to change the policies of this country by standing out here alone at night in front of the White House with a candle?" A.J. Muste replied softly: "Oh I don't do this to change the country. I do this so the country won't change me.

"There is no way to peace; peace is the way" Abraham Johannes Muste